Outfoxing the Blood-Red Eyes
by Sabateikoku
Summary: After halting a hate attack on the streets of Corneria City, Star Fox is tasked with a mission: to shut down speciesist hate groups around the system. As the mission progresses, many more factors come into play, including the deep web, corrupt CDF fighters, and trying not to be caught by "Nightrunners". Rated T for language, violence, and thematic material.
1. Chapter 1

It was a cloudy Saturday evening in the heart of Corneria City. Fox McCloud, Falco Lombardi, Peppy Hare, Slippy Toad, and Krystal had all been invited to an official Cornerian Defense Force dinner. The atmosphere was friendly, the food was filling, and it offered Fox a chance to catch up with some old friends. But the one thing that was on the team's mind after the dinner ended was a poignant presentation. The presentation was about canine supremacy across the Lylat System.

The majority of Lylatians were accepting of a multi-species society. The Lylat System had made significant progress in making sure no species was discriminated against. It was a far cry from when all sorts of discrimination against non-canine species took place. At first, canines were the only species who could vote, join governmental or military organizations, or apply for certain universities. Later, other species slowly began to gain equal rights, but non-primate mammals were usually the first to gain them. But all that changed when a historical ruling took place 60 years ago, where all species were granted rights and privileges equal to the canines. At that time, hate crimes against non-canine species were on the rise. Primates and avians were usually the ones targeted, but a few reptiles were on the receiving end. Eventually, those responsible were brought to justice, and speciesist hate crimes were soon among the most heavily-sentenced under Lylatian law. This dramatically decreased the amount of hate crimes across the Lylat System.

However, hate groups still existed, with most of their locations being closely guarded secrets. Attacks on non-canine species - "losps", as they were insultingly called - were committed in the name of groups such as "Canis Major" or "The Order of Cynos", with the motive of preventing the so-called extinction of all canines in the universe. One had to wonder why non-canines had to die in order to prevent canines from dying out, but this mentality still prevailed among attackers. Many government and non-government organizations alike were determined to bring down these groups. But none of these attempts had succeeded so far. Thus, the closing statement of the presentation was a declaration that the Cornerian Defense Force and other organizations would devote more hours to bringing these organizations down.

"Wow… I had no idea that this hatred went on in the Lylat System a hundred years ago," Krystal said. "I never thought one's species could mean they were inferior."

"Yeah, times were tough back then. I remember some of my relatives telling me about being one of the first generations of non-canines that were allowed to go to university," Peppy said.

"I remember having a few scuffles with speciesist gangs back on the streets," Falco added. "Sure felt nice to give 'em what they deserved. Master species… Pff! They couldn't even last thirty seconds in a fight with us!"

Suddenly, Krystal could feel an uncertain presence. "Guys… I feel something," she told them. "I… I can sense someone's being attacked."

"Where's it located?" Fox asked.

"It's not that far from here… Just in front of an alleyway on 29th Avenue. We should try to see what's going on."

"Good call," FM said. "Krystal and I will go try to see what's going on. The rest of you hold the limo for us."

FM and Krystal ran as fast as they could to the alleyway on 29th Avenue. It was hard, what with Fox in a tuxedo and Krystal in heels, but they made it there fast enough to see what was happening. A young female primate was being brutally beaten by two male canines. Both of them had their heads shaved incredibly close to the scalp, and they were wearing black jackets with a red-eyed, white canine head patch on the back.

"Stop!" the female primate shouted. "Get away from me! I have no relation with Andross!"

"Yes, you do," snarled a tall, thin brown-furred canine. "You're a fucking haplo just like him."

"This system wasn't founded for people like you to run wild in," a stockier, golden-furred canine threatened. "Get the fuck out of here. Go live with your own species. Corneria should be for canines only."

"I- AHH! I was born in-GAAH! I was born in Corneria and-AAHH! And I've lived here all-AAAAAGH!" The primate tried to assert herself, but the canines kept on attacking her. Obviously, they weren't going to listen to her. Fox and Krystal decided it was time to step in.

"Hey!" Fox yelled, approaching the scene. "You leave her alone! She has just as much of a right to live here as the rest of us."

"No, she doesn't," argued the taller, thinner, brown-furred canine. "Look at her. She's a goddamn Andross supporter."

"Just because she's a primate? Look, I may have served in the Lylat Wars, but I can tell you that a lot of the primates who fought hated Andross just as much as the canines. Awful foolish of you to assume someone's allegiances based only off of their species."

"Those primates were only doing it out of pressure," the stockier, golden-furred canine said, staring at Fox. "They didn't want anyone to know their true allegiance."

"Species does NOT define allegiance!" Fox yelled exasperatedly. "Now you get out of here, or I'm calling the police."

Meanwhile, Krystal was helping the primate get to safety. "How badly are you hurt?" she asked.

"I've got several bruises, but nothing's broken or pulled," the primate answered.

"You'll be all right," Krystal reassured her. "Fox! We have to take her with us!"

Fox returned to the two and told them that they would get the primate back home as quickly as possible. "My name's Fox McCloud, and this is Krystal. We're part of Star Fox, a system-wide mercenary space force. What's your name and where do you live?" he asked the primate.

"My name is Eileen Chisholm, and I live on Bornhardt Terrace."

"We'll get you home as soon as possible," Fox reassured Eileen. The three started walking back to the pickup point.

"So, Eileen, how did those thugs find you?" Krystal asked.

"I think they were just lurking around, trying to spring an attack on any non-canine species that passed by. I was walking down 29th to get to a few shops, but they ambushed me and started attacking me."

"That's stupid," Fox commented. "Why does one just go around ambushing the innocent just because they're a different species?"

"They yelled something about me worshipping Andross just because I'm the same species. Apparently they think that if you belong to a specific species, you automatically think like all of them, and if one of them thinks something bad, then all of them are bad by default."

"Of course, these guys think their species can do no wrong…" Fox muttered.

Eventually, the three of them arrived back at the pickup point. "We've got company," Fox announced. "This is Eileen. She was attacked by a group of speciesist thugs. We need to get her home."

"Funny you should mention that," Slippy said. "We watched a presentation on speciesism at the dinner tonight."

"You did?" Eileen asked, curious. "Tell me about it."

The limo arrived. As the rest of the team got in, Fox told the driver that they needed to make a stop at Bornhardt Terrace to drop off Eileen. The chauffeur agreed to stop there. As the limo drove off, Fox told Eileen about the presentation.

"So you mean to tell me that they beat up the innocent just because they're afraid of canines going extinct?" Eileen asked. "That's a pathetic excuse, if you ask me."

"I know," Falco said. "I mean, it's simple: Don't want canines going extinct? Just have kids with another canine. Simple as that! You shouldn't have to resort to killing others!"

"I don't think it's about going extinct," Fox said darkly. "I think these groups just want to go back to when our laws hated other species."

"Then why don't they go to some planet where nobody lives anymore and try to set up their own system there?" Falco suggested. "Like, uh… Titania! No one lives there anymore, so it's a perfect place for a fresh start. Wait, I almost forgot… It's a barren wasteland! That'll make it even more appealing, especially for the rest of us."

"So Eileen, did you find out if those two were part of any organization?" Krystal asked.

"They were wearing jackets with a red-eyed white canine head patch on them," Eileen said.

"White canine head with red eyes. Sound familiar?" Fox asked.

"That was… Canis Major! Yeah, that's what organization they belong to. Canis Major," Slippy said.

"Canis Major?" Eileen asked. "...I have a friend whose sister works for an anti-speciesist organization that tracks Canis Major and their ilk. I'll try to get them on the line. One sec…" Eileen pulled out her cell phone and dialed a number. "Hey, Lacerta, do you have your sister's workplace number? ...OK, thanks. ...Yeah, unfortunately... I'll tell you about it when I get back home, OK? ...Bye."

She then dialed the anti-speciesist organization's number. "Hello, I'd like to report a hate attack. ... I was attacked by two male canines. ...One was about 6'4", brown fur; the other was around 5'9", golden fur. Both were wearing jackets with Canis Major insignia on them. ...No. I'm badly bruised, but I don't need hospital work. I'll be fine...It was near an alleyway on 29th Avenue, next to Robinet Bistro. ...My name is Eileen Chisholm. ...I'm a primate. ...Phone number is 555-839-9358. ...Address is 210 Ormsley Street. ...E-mail is eileenc , spelled E-I-L-E-E-N, and then letter C. ...Yes. ...Yes. ...Yes. Thank you. Bye."

"So did you report the crime?" Peppy asked.

"Mm-hmm. I reported it to the Lylat Species Relations Centre. They've done the vast majority of non-governmental hate crime tracking. One of their higher-ups, Ameiva Schulz, is my friend's sister."

"The Lylat Species Relations Centre… They were the ones who sponsored that presentation, right?" Fox asked.

"Yeah, I think they were," Peppy answered.

Just then, Eileen's phone rang. "Hello? ...Yes, it is. … …Did anyone help me out? … As a matter of fact, someone did. It was none other than Fox McCloud and Krystal from the Star Fox team."

Fox hoped he could get a chance to find out more about what Eileen was saying about his team. But the limo stopped at Bornhardt Terrace. Before Eileen got out, she thanked the Star Fox team for saving her. She then got out, waving goodbye all the while.

"Well, there's something good we did tonight," Falco said. "Even if it was totally unexpected, forced us to hold the limo, we didn't get paid, and was overly referential to what happened at the dinner."

DEFINITIONS:

 ** _Haplo (n)(pl. haplos):_** One of the most offensive slurs for primates; derived from "haplorhines" (group of primates including apes, monkeys, and hominids)

 ** _Losp (n)(pl. losps)_** : Slur for any non-canine animal; shortening of "lower species"


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Fox noticed that he had a message on his answering machine. Must have been left when I was at that dinner, he thought. He pressed the button and listened to the message.

"Hello, Mr. McCloud," a female voice said. "This is Ameiva Schulz from the Lylat Species Relations Centre. We have received word that you have saved somebody from a hate attack last night. Because of this, we wish to see you and the rest of your team sometime today. We are located at 935 Selmer Street, Fichina City, Fichina. Our hours are 8:00 am to 10:00 pm. When you get there, tell them Ameiva sent you. We hope to see you soon. Thank you." The message ended.

"Guys! Come here!" Fox called. "I got a message from the species relations centre." Everyone else rushed over, eager to hear what Fox had to say.

"OK, so I just got a message from the Lylat Species Relations Centre. They appear to have gotten Eileen's message about us helping her. Now they want us to see them. They didn't exactly say what for, but I have a feeling it has something to do with Eileen."

"I smell a job opportunity," Falco said.

"Where exactly are they located?" Peppy asked.

"They're on 935 Selmer Street, in Fichina City," Fox answered. "We should get over there as soon as possible."

"ROB, chart a course for Fichina City," Peppy said to the tall, golden-plated robot that oversaw the Great Fox.

"Course set for Fichina City," ROB announced. "Approximate arrival time: 1 hour and 27 minutes."

Upon reaching Fichina City, the team caught a bus that would take them to Selmer Street. Then, they walked the rest of the way to a brick building with a sign in front of it that read "Lylat Species Relations Centre - Tracking Hate & Teaching Tolerance Since 53 BLW". They walked through the door and went directly to the front desk.

"Hello, and welcome to the Lylat Species Relations Centre," said a young female feline behind the reception desk. Her name was Madeline, according to the name tag she wore. "How may I help you today?"

"We were sent here by Ameiva," Fox told Madeline. "Do you know where she is?"

"I'll page her right now." Madeline pressed a button on the phone on her desk. "Sorry if she takes a while to come out. We've received word about a hate attack that happened in Corneria City last night."

"We were actually the ones who came out and stopped it from getting any worse," Falco spoke up. "Well, Fox and Krystal were, anyway."

"Fox and- Oh, so you're the Star Fox team, the space mercenary unit who served in the Lylat Wars! Pleasure to meet you. This is such an honour to have you with us. You should know that the Androssian Army was on our list of speciesist organizations during the Lylat Wars. Not many people knew that, but members of his troops had committed crimes against others simply because of their species."

"Hm… Never heard that before. But I guess it didn't get out there because most of us associate speciesism with canines," Slippy mused.

"You called?" A female lizard with purple skin and black hair came out from a nearby corridor. "I heard the Star Fox team has arrived."

"Here they are, Ameiva," Madeline said.

"Ah! Good day, Star Fox team," the lizard said. "My name is Ameiva Schulz. I'm one of the head directors at the Lylat Species Relations Centre. It's an honour to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too," Fox replied, shaking hands with Ameiva. "So why did you call us here?"

"Come with me," Ameiva said, leading the crew to another location. All over the walls, there were maps of all the planets in the Lylat System, marked with the locations of various speciesist organizations. A screen flashed various news headlines relating to species relations in the system. Fox could notice news about the attack in Corneria City that he and Krystal had managed to stop. Finally, the group stopped in front of a closed door that read the names of the board of directors: Ameiva Schulz, Irwin Donskoy, Mikkel Westergaard, and Carole Finch.

Ameiva opened the door to reveal a cat, a gray fox, and a finch standing in wait for the team to arrive. "They're here," she told them. "This is the Star Fox team that I told you about. Two of the members thwarted the attack in Corneria City last night."

"Welcome to the Lylat Species Relations Centre," the finch said, offering her hand. "My name is Carole Finch, and I'm one of the directors here. This is Irwin Donskoy and Mikkel Westergaard," she said, gesturing to the cat and fox nearby.

"Pleasure to meet you," Mikkel said, offering his hand.

"We've heard great things about you," Irwin added, also offering a hand.

"Thanks. Nice to meet you, too," Fox said as handshakes were made throughout the entire group. "Now what can we do for you?"

"As you may know, we received a call about an attack on a primate woman in Corneria City. When we received the call, we heard that you had broken it up," Irwin began. "That's when we realized that we could use your assistance in tracking and potentially shutting down some of the groups on our hate list."

"Us? Going in and shutting down entire organizations?"

"Yes," Ameiva said, activating a hologram display in the centre of the room. "Here at the Lylat Species Relations Centre, we track the activities of various speciesist hate groups around the system. Thanks to our efforts, 57 speciesist organizations have been successfully shut down since our inception." Red X's appeared on the holographic display of the planets of the Lylat System, signifying groups that had been shut down. "Yet there are still various groups that remain in operation." The red X's disappeared, and black dots appeared on the planets' surfaces. Many of these dots were on Corneria, but a large percentage were also on Katina. "It is our goal to not only shut these groups down, but also to educate the public and prevent any new groups from forming."

The hologram switched to a picture of a black flag depicting a white canine head with glowing, blood-red eyes. "Does this flag look familiar to any of you?" Ameiva asked.

"That's the picture that was on the back of the attackers' jackets," Krystal pointed out.

"This is the flag of Canis Major, one of the most prominent hate groups on Corneria. As of today, they've been responsible for 56 species-motivated attacks in the past ten years. What's especially surprising about this group is that other than their founder, their current head of operations, and their location on Corneria, next to nothing is known about them."

Ameiva switched the hologram display again. A mugshot of a Saarloos Wolfdog in an orange prison uniform could be seen. "This is Sirius Varg Rockwell, the founder of Canis Major. Twenty years ago, he was found guilty of bombing a reptilian community centre in Eladard, Corneria. He was sentenced to life in the Corneria Penitentiary, where he committed suicide within a month. His motivation behind the bombing was his delusional thinking that reptiles threatened 'canine' values and traditions, so the only way he thought he could preserve them was by taking out the opposition."

"That's horrible," Fox said, shocked at how someone could be so bigoted.

"Why would anyone do such a thing?" Krystal asked, equally horrified.

"Because they're a bunch of jerks with a twisted sense of logic," Falco said.

Ameiva switched displays again. Another Saarloos Wolfdog appeared. This one was covered in various tattoos, and the fur on the top of his head was shaved extremely close to the scalp. "This is Fenris Rockwell, Sirius's eldest son and current director of operations at Canis Major. He's been arrested 3 times: twice for vandalism, and once for inciting species hatred. Although he has never killed anyone before, he is said to have a violent temper, so if you encounter him, please be careful not to provoke him," she continued. "Before taking over Canis Major from his father, he's been involved in various 'shavefur' gangs."

"'Shavefur'? As in the fur at the top of his head?" Krystal asked.

"Yeah. 'Shavefur' is just a catch-all term for working-class punks who shave the top of their head really close to the scalp," Falco explained. "Most of them aren't speciesist, but the canine supremacist faction's the one that's gotten the most coverage. I've befriended some anti-speciesist shavefurs when I was out on the streets. I've also beaten up a few of the speciesist kind. Damn, it felt good to give 'em what was coming."

Ameiva switched off the hologram display. "So, your first directive is to locate Canis Major's base, and get some pictures and other information about the area. I also want you to try and have a conversation with some of the regulars about their organization. If you get the chance to communicate with Fenris, please engage him in conversation, but be careful about what you say to him. I hope to see what you uncover."

"And what about our fee?" Fox asked.

"Your fee depends on your output," Ameiva replied. "If you go above and beyond to accomplish the task… you could be getting something upward of S$7500 for your work."

"Whoa, that's sweet," Falco said.

"And when do you want this done by?" Fox continued.

"I'll give you as much time as you need," Ameiva answered. "But I will be requesting reports from time to time, so you must keep working to find new information."

"We'll do it," Fox said. "Thanks, Ameiva. We'll start our research as soon as we get back home."

"Good luck, Star Fox team," Ameiva said.

DEFINITIONS:

 _ **Shavefur**_ or **_"shave"_** ( _ **n)(pl. Shavefurs, shaves)**_ : Subculture of working-class punks who shave the top of their head extremely close to the scalp. Not inherently associated with speciesism. Despite the name, not all shavefurs are mammalian. Basically the anthro equivalent to the real-world "skinhead" subculture.


End file.
